Cited for overwatering lawns, Clermont residents surprised to learn they were on a water budget

Several neighbors in the Verde Ridge subdivision said they received violation notices for going over their property’s assigned annual water budget.

According to the city, all homes are assigned a water budget to help control overall water use, but many residents said they didn’t even know they needed to adhere to it.

“I have been here since 2009. This is the first time I’ve received something like this stating that there is a water budget established for our property,” said Chris Burgess, who lives in the subdivision. “The city needs to do a better job at communicating with people.”

In a statement, a spokesperson for the city said the water budget system has been in use for more than ten years.

The initiative aims to conserve water, and neighbors do not get notified of their property’s budget until they go over their annual limit.

The budget system was implemented by the city to adhere to their consumptive use permit.